The premise for the book is great. Churches should be nurseries for leaders that take their gifting to use outside as well as inside the church. Most of the book sounded like a very through apologetic for this. Not a cuddly read, but solid argument and presentation. However, I wanted to know more about how to achieve the actual systems and structures to do this. This was covered at the end of the book, but I felt the system suggested was only one form of implementation and that it felt biased to those with competence in an academic and linear system. I wanted more creative and diverse models of implementing a leader cultivating structure. ( )

What the world needs now, is not another book about leadership. I’ve spent the last three years designing and developing an online leadership development program for a Christian nonprofit. I researched and read a lot of material. I wrote and edited a lot of course and scripts. I honestly don’t want to read or think about leadership anymore. However, I couldn’t put down Designed to Lead by Eric Geiger and Kevin Peck. I wish I had read it long before now.

Geiger and Peck write, “Robert Quinn, a leadership professor at University of Michigan, has joined others in pointing out that the origins of the word leader means to ‘go forth and die.’” Designed to Lead stands out from secular books on leadership and even most Christian books on leadership because it approaches the topic from the viewpoint of the church and discipleship. Geiger and Peck write:

> Leadership authors do not understand that leadership means “Go forth to die.” If they did understand it, they would not be enticed to write about it—because people do not want to hear this message. Most people want to be told how to get extraordinary results with minimum risk. They want to know how to get out-of-the-box results with in-the-box courage… Who but the Church can really understand the weight and significance of “go forth and die.”

The book is structured in three parts: conviction, culture, and constructs. Understanding each part is essential to developing an effective leadership development program. Geiger is careful to point out that the focus of the church is not leadership development, it’s the gospel. Leaders from the church go into all spheres of life and culture, and they carry the gospel message with them as they serve those around them. Geiger states, “If we do not equip God’s people to lead according to God’s design inside and outside the Church, they will be left to lead according to the world’s design.” He goes on to state:

> No organization should outpace the Church in developing leaders. Why should we not be outpaced? No other gathering of people has a greater mission, a greater promise, or a greater reward.

Over half the book is dedicated to the conviction and culture of leadership development—essentially the “why” of leadership development. Geiger writes, “Why and how we lead is much more important than what we lead. As we develop leaders, likewise, we must train them that the how and why or their leadership is critically important.” I know that frustrates many people, especially type A leaders driven for results. But that’s kind of the point, if you don’t understand the why behind leadership development and effectively communicate that to your people, you will fail your people. It’s that simple.

Designed to Lead does not disappoint though. The section on constructs gives practical instruction, strategies, and systems for developing leaders. Geiger discusses Jesus’ model of “watch, go, and let’s talk.” The book also gives examples of competencies for leaders as they grow and discusses developing a leadership pipeline.

I highly recommend this book to anyone in church leadership or anyone who wants to take on more responsibility in church. Of the many leadership books I’ve read, this is the most Christ-centered and biblical approach. I want to finish with a quote that sums up the leadership development process:

> Leadership development does not provide instant gratification. It does not produce immediate results. Unlike executing a plan, running a program, completing a task, or knocking out a short-term goal, developing leaders is long and hard work. It takes great discipline to develop leaders for the future. ( )